Similar, Yet So Different
by BloodyBlueMoon
Summary: Sakura, Ino, Shikamaru, Kuro and Kira are assigned a mission, but, when a new guy is assigned with them, what is Sakura's reaction, and what does this guy think of her? And on top of this an annual festival is coming up. MORE INSIDE!
1. New Mission

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
_**_Dreams_**

**NEW LOVE – SIMMILAR, YET SO DIFFERENT**

He was so silent, just like Sasuke, but his silence was different. His eyes were like Sasuke's, but a deep, midnight blue instead of black, and they told a different, yet similar story. Like Sasuke's, his expression was thoughtful, but a different kind of thoughtful. However, unlike Sasuke's, his hair was a mess, sticking up all over the place, even more than Naruto's and was longer than his too, and was a dark brown; unlike Sasuke, he smiled and laughed, while, just like Sasuke, he hides similar secrets from a similar, yet different past.

Sakura, Ino, Shikamaru, Kuro and Kira are assigned a mission to help out at the academy.

As usual, Shikamaru thinks it's troublesome, as usual, Kuro was quiet most of the way, as usual, Sakura and Ino were talking with each other and Kira was completely silent, but when a new guy is assigned with them, what is Sakura's reaction, and what does this new guy think of her? And on top of all this, an annual festival is coming up.

Takes Place after Time-skip.

A bit of Ino/Shika, Kuro/Kira (Both O.C), but mainly Saku/O.C.

**Chapter 1 – New**** Mission**

Early that morning, Sakura, Ino, Kira, Shikamaru and Kuro walked down the hallway of the Hokage's mansion towards Tsunade's office, Kuro in the lead, then Ino and Sakura with Shikamaru following them closely, while Kira trailed behind them.

"Hey, Kuro-kun, who do you think is prettiest?" Ino asked.

Kuro turned his head slightly to eye Ino curiously.

"C'mon, be honest" Sakura added.

Kuro sighed, "To be honest…" he turned his head so he could hide the faint blush from the two prying kunoichi.

"None of you…"

"Eh?!" Ino and Sakura cried, almost falling over their own feet.

"…I don't think any of you are pretty, I think you're all beautiful" he finished.

Sakura and Ino got over themselves with surprised expression before they gave wide smiles, blushing and giggling.

"Especially…"

"Huh, especially?" Sakura inquired.

Kuro looked over his shoulder, but he wasn't looking at Sakura or Ino.

Sakura and Ino looked over their shoulders to follow Kuro's gaze that rested on Kira.

"Kawaii! So, you like Kira-chan, eh?" Ino asked.

Kuro tuner back to watch where he was going, hiding a blush from the two.

"Oh, I knew it! Kawaii!!" Ino cried.

"You guys are troublesome" Shikamaru sighed.

Sakura didn't take her eyes off of Kira for a moment before she turned back to Kuro.

"Hey, Kuro-san, what's up with Kira-chan?" she asked.

"Huh, oh, I'm not really sure. She's been like that for a while now since WhiteTail-sama was hospitalized" Kuro replied.

"Oh" was Sakura's only response.

"Who's WhiteTail-sama?" Ino asked.

"WhiteTail-sama is Kira-chan's master, but, when we were bringing her back from the snow village, he was brutally beaten up and was left for dead. Luckily we got there in time and managed to save him, but we still don't know if he'll make it" Kuro explained.

"Damn, that's unfortunate. How troublesome" Shikamaru said.

"Well, on a lighter note, what do you think Tsunade-sama wanted us for?" Sakura asked.

"Dunno, to run errands, a mission maybe?" Ino replied, as clueless as Sakura and the others.

"If we do get a mission I hope it's a good one" Kuro said.

"Same here, but all missions are troublesome" Shikamaru sighed as they entered the Hokage's office.

"Oh, and I was just about to assign you 5 a mission, but now I'm not so sure" Tsunade said.

"Good going, Shikamaru!" Ino cried.

Shikamaru sighed.

"I'm just kidding, I do have a mission for you, but it's a C rank mission" Tsunade explained.

"Well, it's better than nothing" Kuro sighed.

"Your C rank mission is to help out at the academy. You will be helping the students improve their techniques and to show them new ones. Also, there will be a surprise after lunch there" Tsunade explained.

The 5 nodded, but there was a knock at the door.

"Enter" Tsunade called.

The 5 spun around as the door opened and a boy of about 16 stepped in.

Sakura's eyes widened slightly as she took note of the boy.

He was so silent, just like Sasuke, but his silence was different. His eyes were like Sasuke's, but a deep, midnight blue instead of black, and they told a different, yet similar story. Like Sasuke's, his expression was thoughtful, but a different kind of thoughtful. However, unlike Sasuke's, his hair was a mess, sticking up all over the place, even more than Naruto's and was longer than his too, and was a dark brown.

He wore a black singlet shirt and khaki green pants, while two, long and magnificent, black and silver hilted katanas rested across his back.

His forehead protector rested around his neck and bore Konoha's symbol; he also wore black ninja sandals.

"Ah, Himitsu Coda, you're here. Was your trip safe?" Tsunade asked.

The boy addressed as Himitsu Coda nodded.

"Good. Well, Haruno Sakura, Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, Tsume Kira, Arashi Kuro and Himitsu Coda, your C rank mission is to help out at the academy" Tsunade said.

They all nodded as they exited one by one, but, Kira was held back a moment.

"Kira" Tsunade called.

Kira turned around.

"Are you up to this?"

Kira nodded before she exited to follow the others.

* * *

Sorry, I wanted to re-do this chapter, but I hope it's just as good!

Ja ne!

BloodyBlueMoon


	2. Love At First Sight?

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
_**_Dreams_**

**Chapter 2 – Love at first sight?**

Sakura walked with Ino and the others towards the academy, Kuro and Coda in front, Shikamaru following behind Ino and Sakura, and Kira trailing behind.

"So, this is the academy, huh?" Coda asked, looking around as his eyes rested on the swing the longest.

"Yeah, it's nothing special, but Iruka-senpai is really nice" Kuro replied.

Sakura didn't take her eyes off of Coda; he was so similar to Sasuke, but yet so different at the same time.

Also, she had given up her so called 'feelings' for Sasuke, so, why did she feel so warm and fuzzy around this new comer she had merely known for half an hour?

_He reminds you of Sasuke, doesn't he?_

'Huh, yeah, I guess so, but, I've giving up those feelings for Sasuke'

_So, what's wrong?_

'I don't know, for some reason I feel so warm around him'

_Love at first sight; that's what I recon._

'What? No! I've only known this guy for less than half an hour and I don't even know what he's like!'

_Eh, suit yourself, but I think you like him!_

'Oh, shut it will you?!'

"Sakura…" came Ino's voice, but Sakura didn't register it.

_No! I think you like him and I'm going to keep nagging you until you admit it!_

'I asked you to shut it!'

"Sakura!" came Ino's voice again.

"Huh, what?" Sakura said as she snapped back to reality.

"You spaced out on us, what's up?" Ino asked.

"Nothing, I was just thinking" Sakura replied as they walked through the doors of the academy.

"About what?" Ino pried.

Sakura shrugged, giving a quick glance to Coda that Ino, fortunately, didn't see.

"Nothing in particular" came the reply.

Ino was suspicious, but shrugged the matter off.

"It's been too long since we've been here" came Kira's soft voice from behind.

Ino and Sakura spun around but smiled never the less in agreement.

After a while, the small group came to a halt as they knocked on the door to the classroom.

"Enter" called Iruka from inside.

Kuro opened the door and the 6 stepped in, Kira closing the door behind her as she entered last.

"Ah, long time no see. My, you've all grown so much" Iruka commented as he scanned over the ninja, but, his eyes came to a rest on Coda.

"You must be the one Tsunade-sama told me about; I'm Iruka"

"Hai, Himitsu Coda. It's nice to meet you, Iruka-senpai"

_He's a Jounin, huh?_

'Yeah…'

Iruka nodded before he turned to address them all.

"So, you're all aware of your mission and the 'surprise' right?"

"Hai"

"Good" Iruka nodded with approval.

"Iruka-senpai, what is this surprise?" Kira asked.

Iruka didn't exactly know what to say; he knew she had a short temper, so he was slightly nervous.

He sighed, however.

"I'm sorry, but I can't say"

Kira grumbled and folded her arms in distaste.

"Anyway, the students should be here soon enough. In the mean time, please wait in the classroom next door" Iruka asked.

The six nodded before they proceeded to the next room.

"I wonder what this 'surprise' is" Kuro wondered.

"Yeah, same as all of us" Ino replied.

"Well, whatever it is, it's going to be troublesome anyway" Shikamaru sighed.

"You say everything's troublesome, Shikamaru" Kira grumbled from the back of the room.

"Yeah, you do" Kuro said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Why are we picking on Shika-chan all of a sudden?" Ino asked with a slightly defensive tone in her voice.

"We're just mucking around, Ino. Why are you so defensive all of a sudden?" Sakura inquired.

Ino was caught off guard and bowed her head to hide a blush, "S-Shika-chan is my t-team mate, and so I'm defending him, t-that's all"

Shikamaru groaned, "I don't understand women, they're all too troublesome"

Kuro laughed as he leant against the board, "I'm sure Shikamaru can defend himself, Ino. He is a grown shinobi"

Ino went redder.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I didn't exactly catch your names" Coda said.

Ino was the first to straighten with a bright expression, "Oh, well, I'm Yamanaka Ino"

"I'm Nara Shikamaru; nice to meet you" Shikamaru greeted.

"Likewise" Coda replied.

"Arashi Kuro, and it's nice to meet you kid" Kuro greeted, "And that's Tsume Kira-chan" he pointed out Kira, who sat at the back of the room.

Coda nodded before he turned to Sakura.

"Haruno Sakura" she greeted simply.

"Nice to meet you, Sakura" Coda said.

Sakura merely gave a small smile.

_His eyes are so…engaging._

'Ah, not now! We're on a mission and ninja aren't supposed to have feelings!'

_But they are! And you know that no matter what, ninja can't completely kill their emotions._

'You've got me there…but…'

_But?_

'It seems like he's hiding something'

_Like what, some big secret from his past?_

'…I guess so'

_Well, why don't you get to know him and find out?_

'What, are you crazy?!'

_No, and he seems similar to Sasuke-kun._

_But, then again, I could be wrong and he could be completely different._

'…maybe'

_Just get to know him for a start, see what he's like._

'I dunno…'

_Oh for god's sake! He's good looking and he seems nice. I'm not even sure he's like Sasuke at all!_

'…well'

_That's the spirit! And who know, you might actually grow to like him._

"Sakura" said a familiar voice.

"Huh, what?" Sakura replied, coming back to reality.

"You spaced out again, what's up?" Ino asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine. I was just thinking again" Sakura replied, leaning against a wall.

Ino hid the fact that she was suspicious with a simple "Ok", but she was slightly worried as well.

Suddenly, their peace and quiet was disturbed by the patter of running feet as students ran past and into Iruka's room.

"Looks like we'll be in there soon" Kuro commented.

Shikamaru sighed with a groan from Kira.

"What's up with you two?" Ino asked, already knowing Shikamaru's answer.

"It's all too troublesome" was Shikamaru's answer.

"I hate kids" Kira replied.

Ino was a little taken aback by this, but sighed just as Iruka walked in.

"Ah, sorry to keep you waiting, but the students are all here. I'm putting you in pairs to work with a group of students, if that's alright" Iruka explained.

They all nodded.

"Good. The pairs will be Shikamaru and Ino, Kuro and Kira, and Sakura and Coda"

Kuro glanced over at Kira with a slight blush, but managed to maintain it as he nodded.

Shikamaru sighed and Ino nodded.

Sakura was slightly taken aback as she glanced over at Coda, who met her eyes with a glance and the two blushed slightly, but never the less, nodded.

Iruka smiled and led them from the room.

'Why do I feel so nervous around him…do I…like him…?' Sakura thought, but brushed the matter aside as she entered the room full of students.

* * *

Woo, Chapter 2!

Sorry it took so long, I've been busy with school, which reminds me I GET TO GO TO THE EASTER SHOW FOR SCHOOL (AG) !!

Hehe, I'm so excited!

Well, please review and I'll post more soon!

Ja ne!


	3. Skills

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
**Dreams**_

**  
Chapter 3 – Skills**

Once the groups had been assigned to the pairs, they had preceded to the academy's outside shuriken posts, where they practiced their shuriken and kunai throwing.

Sakura watched the students aim for the targets, while Coda corrected some of their positions.

Ino and Shikamaru helped the students on their throwing techniques, while Kira and Kuro sparred slightly as their group practiced.

Sakura slowly walked up to Coda, stopping just as he finished correcting a small boy's stance.

"Oh, hey Sakura-chan" he greeted.

"H-Hey" Sakura stuttered as Coda walked up to her slowly.

"Is something wrong?"

Sakura shook her head.

Coda smiled slightly, his eyes seeming to gleam in the sunlight.

Sakura blushed faintly, hoping Coda didn't notice.

"Listen Sakura-chan, um…I was just wondering but, during lunch, would you like to train with me?" Coda asked after a long pause, rubbing the back of his head.

Sakura was slightly surprised by the offer, but did want to test his skills.

"Um…ok, sure"

"Great!"

Sakura smiled back at Coda, blushing slightly at his grin; somehow, he reminded her of Sasuke and was a bit like Naruto too, but, at the same time, he seemed different from both.

"So, how do you like it in Konohagakure?" Sakura asked, not knowing what else to ask.

"It's different from the country town I grew up in, I can tell you that. But, even though it wasn't as big, we did have a ninja academy" Coda said, but a sad and thoughtful expression washed over his face after he said this.

"Is something wrong, Coda-kun?" Sakura asked, a blush rising as she added 'kun' to his name.

Coda shook his head and turned to Sakura with a faint smile, "No, I'm alright…"

Sakura watched him with pleading and curious eyes, but smiled after a moment.

There was an awkward silence between the two before someone called to Coda.

"Coda-san, dodge this!" a boy cried.

Coda turned slightly to face the boy when a kunai whizzed past his nose, missing him by centimetres.

Coda turned abruptly to face the boy before he gave a sly grin and drew two kunai, taking a fighting stance and beckoning the boy forward.

The boy seemed slightly confused for a moment before he grinned and drew two of his own kunai, running at Coda before tackling him, whom allowed himself to topple over and land with a thud.

"Ok, ok, you got me!" Coda laughed as the other boys started leaping on him.

Sakura eyed Coda gently with a gentle smile.

_I guess you could say he's a remarkable one._

'Yeah…'

* * *

Lunch came quickly, too quickly if you asked Sakura, and she and Coda were already 10 minutes into their training.

It was actually more of a fight than training, however, even though neither touched each other.

On and on the fight went, kicks, punches, and even lashing blades were aimed at each other, but didn't mark the other's body.

'Damn, Sakura-chan's fast' Coda thought as he dodged a kick and a punch from Sakura.

He suddenly flipped backwards, Sakura dodging his feet by millimetres, before he landed and took up a fighting stance.

Sakura took up a fighting stance too, panting slightly before the two ran at each other.

'Coda-kun's fast' Sakura thought just before the two almost collided in the middle.

There was a huge cloud of dust that the two created as they halted abruptly before each other, the dust settling to show a katana held millimetres from Sakura's neck and a kunai held millimetres from Coda's stomach.

They stood for a moment, eying each other before they allowed themselves to start quivering.

Sakura and Coda smiled at each other as they withdrew their weapons.

"Maybe we should head back now?" Sakura suggested.

As much as Coda liked just being alone with Sakura, he nodded in agreement before his stomach growled.

"Well, my stomach agrees so let's go!" he smiled.

Sakura laughed as the two started walking.

"Do you think they've left any food for us?" Sakura asked.

Coda laughed, "I hope so"

Sakura smiled, "C'mon, I'll race you back" and with that, Sakura started running ahead.

"Hey, wait up!" Coda called as he started running after her.

He hadn't known Sakura for long, but Coda had started to like Sakura, he just hoped he could ask her to this festival that was coming up.

* * *

Sakura and Coda arrived back at the academy just moments apart, panting heavily as they walked towards the others.

"No fair, you got a head start!" Coda said as he came up to Sakura.

"Oh, are you sad that you got beaten by a girl?" Sakura teased.

"No, but you still had a head start!"

Sakura laughed as they stopped where the other's sat.

"Where've you two been?" Shikamaru asked.

"Sparring, did you bother leaving us anything to eat?" Sakura asked.

Ino smiled, "There're a few sandwiches left if you want them"

"Thanks Ino" Sakura replied as she and Coda sat with Ino.

"Say, where're Kira and Kuro?" Coda asked before he started eating.

"Well, Kira went off somewhere and Kuro went with her, but where they actually are is a mystery to us" Shikamaru said.

"Maybe they wanted some 'alone' time" Ino suggested.

Sakura laughed, "I don't think that's the real reason why they went off. Kira-chan has had a pretty traumatising past, and Kuro-san is her team mate and best male friend, so maybe she just trusts him the most"

Ino shrugged, "It's possible, but maybe it's something more"

Sakura shrugged with a small smile.

Shikamaru sighed as he flopped backwards, "You guys are troublesome"

Ino and Sakura smiled, but Sakura's faded and she looked down at the ground before her feet.

"You ok, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"Yeah, I'm ok…" Sakura replied, but her head snapped up when something rustled in the tree above them.

They all looked up, but only to find Kuro and Kira looking down at them from a branch.

"Yo" Kuro smiled.

"What the hell! Don't surprise us like that!" Ino exclaimed.

Kira smiled slightly before she jumped down and sat on the other side of Sakura.

"Are you ok? I heard you went off with Kuro" Sakura asked as she put a comforting arm around Kira.

Kira merely nodded, but noticed Kuro stayed in the tree.

"I wonder what this surprise is supposed to be" he sighed.

"We all want to know, but I think it's best to wait and find out" Coda replied.

Kuro gave a weak smile before students started running in through the academy doors.

"Looks like lunch's over" Kira commented as she got to her feet.

Kuro jumped down and landed by Kira before Sakura, Ino, Coda and Shikamaru stood too.

They started to near the door, more students running in before a kunai whizzed past the group and embedded itself into the door frame.

The group was puzzled for a moment before they whirled around just in time to block hundreds of kunai that were thrown at them.

The rest of the students ran in side as the kunai clattered to the ground.

They all looked up from shielding themselves, slightly battered, to find 6, cloaked figures standing at the academy's gate, all looking very skilled.

* * *

Woo, chapter 3 and a cliffhanger!  
I like cliffhangers! And I'll try to post the next chapter asap!  
For now, please read and review and I'll work on the next chapter.  
Btw, yes the easter show was fun!  
Hope you all like!

Ja ne!


	4. Suprise Attack?

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
_**_Dreams_**

**Chapter 4 – Surprise A****ttack!?**

The 6 cloaked figures that stood at the gate stood still, not moving, and not saying a word.  
They each wore jet black cloaks with hoods that covered their faces, but, something about them seemed familiar.

"Who the hell are these jokers?!" Kira snarled.

"Beats me, but my guess is that they were sent" Kuro said.

Kira's snarl grew murderous, slightly frightening Shikamaru and Ino.

"Calm down, Kira-chan" Kuro whispered to Kira, slightly calming her.

"What do you want?" Sakura called to the 6 mysterious figures.

She got no reply, but, one reached to their back and unsheathed a sword.

Shikamaru scowled, "Looks like they aren't to be joked around with"

Kira, however, seemed to smile, "Let's see how good they are before I turn them in to the Hokage" she drew both of her katana and allowed black chakra to swirl around them.

"Or tear them limb from limb" she smiled menacingly.

The cloaked figures stiffened and took up a fighting stance, each drawing familiar weapons.

Kuro recognised them all at once, but decided to play along for a while as he drew his katana.

"Let's just have a bit of fun first, shall we?" he smiled.

The other's got the idea and smiled before they too took a fighting stance.

There was a battering gust of wind as the two groups stood still, but, as it died down, Kira was the first to disappear.

Kuro smirked before he made a few hand signs.

"Fire Type; Dragon Fire Skill!" he called, blowing a stream of fire towards the cloaked figures.

They all stiffened as the fire grew closer, but jumped at the last moment.

Kuro smirked, "They forgot about Kira"

Sakura smirked as well as Kira appeared behind one, who was kicked down to the ground with enormous force.

Kuro lunged forward as the cloaked figure with the sword landed near him, lashing out with chakra embedded katanas.

Ino looked over to the one with the Knuckle Busters, knowing who they belonged to, but decided to play along.

"Shika-chan!" she called to Shikamaru, who was running over to her.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Kagemane no Jutsu!" he called, linking his shadow with the opponents' shadow.

"Right; Mind-body confusion technique!" Ino called, making a rectangle like symbol with her hands.

"Nice one, Ino!" Sakura called, dodging another cloaked figure's attacks.

'It's like this one can see my attacks before I even hit him' Sakura thought, but realized who it was and smiled to herself, grabbing the ninja's wrist as he threw a punch at her and brought him to the ground, pinning him.

Coda, however, was now dealing with two, standing between them with his katanas drawn.

He stood perfectly still, taking note of their stances before he smiled.

The two figures lunged at him, one with a sword drawn, the other with two kunai, but, just as they were about to strike him, he jumped.

The two figures slightly lost their balance, but it was enough for Coda to bring them to the ground by landing on their shoulders.

"Are you ok to deal with this one?" Shikamaru asked Ino, who were dealing with the same person.

"Yeah" Ino replied.

Shikamaru nodded before he released the jutsu and ran over to Coda, linking one of the cloaked figures shadows with his like the others.  
Kuro managed to clip the nerve in the cloaked figure's leg, making him collapse.

Kuro walked up to him and pushed him onto his back roughly, holding a katana to his neck as he knocked the sword out of the cloaked figures hands.

Kira, by now, had black chakra swirling over her arms and her left, sky blue eye had become fiery amber, like her right eye that was of a wolf's.

The cloaked figure she was battling stood, cuts covering him, but, as he met her eyes, he stepped backwards a couple of times.

Kira smirked before she suddenly appeared before him, harshly thrusting the handle of a katana into his stomach.

He coughed up blood before he collapsed to his knees, clutching at his stomach as blood trickled from his mouth.

"We'll ask again; why are you here?" Kira snarled as the chakra died down.

"We were sent" the cloaked man replied, his voice hoarse, but Kira recognized it never the less, even though she decided to play along.

"Who were you sent by?" Kira asked, but with a less forceful tone.

The man didn't reply as his body trembled.

"I asked who you were sent by!" Kira snarled, knocking the man back with a foot that she forcefully placed on his chest and pressed down, making the man cough up more blood.

"The Fifth…" was his response as his hood fell back and revealed the face of her senpai, Inazuma (O.C).

Kira scowled as she released the pressure on his chest.

Inazuma gave a small laugh, "Surprise…"

Kira snarled as she stepped off him.

The others released the cloaked figures they were holding, whom slipped their hoods off to reveal the faces of Kurenai, Kakashi, Asuma, Kitzuna (O.C) and Tennou (O.C).

Sakura was surprised that she had beaten Kakashi, but, then, she wasn't because she felt like he was holding back.

"Good work, Sakura" he said as he stood.

Sakura sighed.

Kuro walked over to Inazuma after being congratulated by Tennou.

Once they had all been congratulated, the 6 cloaked Jounin waved before disappearing.

"Well, that was troublesome" Shikamaru said, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'll have to agree with you, Shika-chan" Ino said, turning to him.

"I'm going to kill Tsunade-sama!" Kira snarled.

Kuro laughed, "I thought you'd say that"

Coda walked over to Sakura, who was looking in no particular direction.

"You were really good, Sakura-chan" he commented, catching Sakura's attention.

Sakura turned to Coda with a smile, blushing slightly, "You were really good too!"

Coda smiled, but it faded quickly and was replaced with a thoughtful expression as he blushed slightly.

"Um…well, we should probably head back in, shouldn't we?"

Sakura nodded nervously as the group headed back into the academy.

'Ah, I feel so nervous around him, maybe I do like Coda-kun...' Sakura thought as she walked with Coda, occasionally glancing up at him.

* * *

Yay, chapter 4!

I hope it's good, but I think I kinda screwed the ending up..eheh  
Well, anyway, I still hope you all like it and that it's good.  
Please review and tell me what you think.

Also, Kira is a demon, not a Jinchuuriki, but a plain old, destructive demon called Honoo Okami (Flame Wolf). I'll try and do something on her so you kinda get the idea of who/what she is.

I put an (O.C) to the character's I've created that I introduced in this chapter, so I hope it somehow helps.

well, that's all for now, I'll try to upload asap.

Ja ne!


	5. Dreams

**NOTE: This chapter is long and slightly depressing. If you are in a happy mood, it may not be wise to read it, but you may if you want to.**

**Still, this chapter may explain quite a bit in the next chapter that I will hopefully post soon, but just be aware that this one is slightly depressing.  
Thank you, BloodyBlueMoon.**

Btw, when you read, if you read, Kira's dream, Tsume Kane and Inuzuka Skye are Kira's parents, and her mother has sky-blue eyes because she's an inbred Inuzuka via her parents...hopefully it's not too confusing.

* * *

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
_**_Dreams_**

**Chapter 5 – Dreams.**

After the mission was complete, Kira sat by her master's hospital bed, staring at his pale and bloodstained face.

She could sense he was still alive, but she was afraid he wouldn't make it; he was the only thing she had besides Kuro after her parents' brutal deaths those many years ago.

Kira shakily moved her hand to her masters' forehead, feeling the little warmth that radiated from it as she brushed his fringe aside.

She couldn't do anything but hope he was going to be alright.

As tears started to roll down her face, Kira laid her head on her masters' chest, silently crying as she slowly fell asleep with the slow trance of her masters' heart beat…

* * *

The sun was setting slowly, stretching its' golden arms over anything and everything, giving a gentle warmth to the end of the day as Ino walked along the sun stricken streets, heading towards her house after closing up her family's flower shop.

She stretched with a yawn as she slowed her walk to a stroll; she was tired and was looking forward to a long, peaceful sleep, but, as she walked, she couldn't help but think about Shikamaru.

His smile, his thoughtful air, the way he said everything was troublesome, almost everything about him gave Ino a warm and comforting feeling.

She giggled as she remembered how he said it was all too troublesome, or how he'd say he'd never understand women, but, she sighed as she stopped at the end of Shikamaru's street, looking down it with anguish.

She had a strange urge to run down there to Shikamaru's house, but managed to contain it and keep walking, even though she kept looking back, for some reason hoping that Shikamaru would be there, staring at her with his dark, thoughtful eyes.

Ino sighed as she turned to focus on walking back to her house.

She knew he wouldn't be there, even if she wanted him to be, but, maybe she'd ask him to the festival in only a few days time…

* * *

Sakura slowly walked down the sun stricken streets, her arms wrapped around her self in an act to keep her self warm, but, she wished that it was Coda with his arms wrapped around her, keeping her warm.

She stopped and looked up at the sky that was now near dusk.

'Coda-kun…' she thought.

Sakura knew that she liked Coda more than just a friend, there was no denying that now, but she couldn't help but wonder if he liked her just as much.

Sakura shivered as a cold breeze blew, whipping at her hair and sending a chill through her body.

She kept walking to keep her self warm, wrapping her arms tighter around herself as she shivered.

Sakura smiled to her self as she remembered Coda's smile, his midnight blue eyes, his dark brown, all-over-the-place spiky hair, and his voice, just these brought a bit of warmth and a smile to her self.

She slowly approached her house with a thoughtful look, but stopped at her door with her hand on the doorknob.

Maybe she'd ask Coda tomorrow.

Maybe…

* * *

_**Kira awoke to a cool breeze and the soft warmth of the sun, finding herself lying in the soft, cool grass of a wide open clearing.**_

_**It took her a moment to take all this in before she sat up and looked around.**_

_**What happened to the hospital room and WhiteTail?**_

_**There were soft footsteps that caught Kira's attention, which stopped behind her.**_

_**Kira stood up and spun around, but only to meet the familiar face of WhiteTail.**_

"_**I thought I'd find you here" he said.**_

"_**WhiteTail-sama…"**_

"_**Come on, your parents are looking for you" he said as he turned and started walking off.**_

"_**My parents…" by now, Kira was extremely confused; WhiteTail was supposed to be in hospital on the verge of life and death, while her parents had died when she was 3 years old and had been dead for almost 13 years.**_

_**For some reason, however, Kira followed her master into her clan's village, which had been burnt down when her parents had died, but was standing before her eyes like it had just been built.**_

_**Kira continued to follow her master to what she recognised as her house.**_

_**As Kira entered, however, everything seemed to stop as her eyes rested on two very familiar figures talking in the middle of the room.**_

_**Her mother looked the same as when she last saw her; long, jet black hair and Inuzuka markings, but eyes of a most dazzling sky blue.**_

_**Her father, too, looked the same; messy, white blonde hair and the Tsume claw marks on either side of his cheeks with fiery amber eyes and black eye whites.**_

"_**Mom…Dad…" Kira whispered, but just loud enough for her parents to hear.**_

_**Her parents turned to her before they smiled, but, as they did, everything burst into flames, just as they did 13 years ago.**_

_**After a while, the flames died down and Kira found her-self in front of a concrete statue of an angel, bearing 3 names on a polished rock;**_

_** Tsume Kane (O.C)  
Inuzuka Skye (O.C)**_

_** Ookami WhiteTail…**_

_**Kira's heart filled with dread and grief at the names of the three, but, she spun around when a hand was placed on her shoulder and she met the familiar face of Kuro.**_

"_**Kuro-kun…" she whispered, tears running down her face.**_

_**He smiled before he embraced her in a hug.**_

"_**Let's just…stay like this…" she whispered.**_

"_**Kira-chan…"**_

"_**Don't go…please"**_

"_**I'm sorry, Kira-chan, but…"**_

"_**No, please…don't…don't go!" Kira cried.**_

"…_**I have to…" Kuro finished before disappearing with a gust of wind.**_

_**Tears streamed down Kira's face as she turned back to the statue that now bore a fourth name;**_

_** Arashi Kuro…**_

Kira woke with a slight start, finding her self back in the hospital room with her head on WhiteTail's chest.

She sighed heavily, her breath shuddering as she lifted her head and wiped away the tears that had stained her face.

'It was just a dream…just another dream' she told her-self.

After a long pause, Kira stood and headed for the door, stopping for a moment to look back at her master's pale and bloodstained face before she headed for the training grounds…

* * *

_**Ino awoke to a cool, gentle breeze and found her-self in a forest, sitting at the base of an old oak.**_

"_**What happened to my room?" she asked her-self as she stood, but, a rustle distracted her and she turned to find a black stag staring at her with large, brown eyes.**_

_**She sighed with relief as it bounded off.**_

"_**Where am I?" she finally asked herself as she walked along, but stopped with amazement as she came to a wide clearing.**_

_**The clearing was full of deer, the occasional stag challenging another, doe's grazing and the occasional faun playing around.**_

"_**The Nara Forest…" Ino whispered to herself.**_

_**Ino stood silently for a moment, watching, when she noticed a familiar friend on the other side of the clearing, patting the same black stag she saw earlier.**_

"_**Shikamaru-kun…" she said.**_

_**Shikamaru turned at Ino's voice before he smiled gently at the sight of her.**_

_**Ino felt a blush rise as he smiled at her and started to walk up to her.**_

_**She blushed further as Shikamaru stood in front of her, his dark eyes staring deep into hers.**_

_**Then, without a word, Shikamaru placed a hand on Ino's cheek and softly kissed the corner of her mouth.**_

_**Ino's heart accelerated and most likely skipped a beat or two, but, as a gust of wind battered the two, Shikamaru disappeared with it.**_

_**With Shikamaru's disappearance, the deer had disappeared too and even her own body had started to fad into complete darkness, completely disappearing…**_

Ino sat up abruptly in her bed, moonlight flooding through her window and into her room.

She could feel her-self blushing from her dream, her heart and mind racing.

After a few moments, Ino calmed herself with a heavy sigh before looking at her clock.

12:30am…

Ino groaned as she flopped backwards onto her pillow, staring at her ceiling with annoyance.

After minutes of trying to get back to sleep, Ino gave up with an irritated sigh and managed to haul herself out of bed.

She walked into her bathroom, splashed her face with water to wake her self up before drying it and dressing.

She then decided to go for a walk to take her mind off things, going wherever her legs took her…

* * *

_**Sakura opened her eyes and found her-self walking through Konohagakure…or, what was left of it anyway.**_

_**Due to the state it was in, Konohagakure was probably best described as a smouldering site of burning rubble.**_

_**As she walked, demonic figures ran from her and she could feel skulls crushing under her feet.**_

_**Burning bodies stretched out their hands, begging for mercy.**_

_**She killed everyone, even the ones she loved most.**_

_**Sakura had been careless with explosive tags and had caused an explosion which blew up her house with her parents in it.**_

_**She had set fire to the Hokage's mansion and blown that up too with her master - the Hokage - and the ANBU squad in it.**_

_**She had also managed to bury and crush her friends and team mates in a landslide.**_

_**And although she ran around everywhere begging for help, no one responded.**_

_**It was as if she was a devil of death and there were no angels left in the world.**_

_**Then, something stopped her, something like shifting rubble and faint coughing.**_

_**Sakura turned to where the noise came from, but, her eyes widened with shock before she started running to the male with midnight blue eyes.**_

"_**Sakura…chan…" Coda gasped as Sakura knelt beside him.**_

_**He tried to lift himself, but the pain that surged through his body was too much and he fell back to the ground before Sakura.**_

"_**Don't move, I'll try and heal you" Sakura said frantically as a green blaze appeared below her hands.**_

"_**Stop…Sakura-chan"**_

"_**No, I won't…you'll be ok!"**_

"_**Sakura, listen…"**_

"_**I'll save you and you'll be ok!"**_

"…_**It's already too late for me, Sakura-chan"**_

"_**No, no it's not!"**_

"_**Sakura-chan…" he shakily lifted his hand and placed it on Sakura's cheek.**_

_**Sakura froze, tears streaming down her face as the green blaze cut out.**_

"…_**Don't cry, you'll be ok…I promise…"**_

_**Sakura took his hand from her cheek and held it as she slipped her other arm under his head and held him close.**_

_**She could feel little warmth in him and his body was trembling horribly, like vicious shivers.**_

_**He gave a weak smile as his pupils started to dilate and his body became limp, but not before he uttered something to Sakura.**_

"_**I…love you…Sakura…chan…"**_

Sakura sat up abruptly, her eyes wide and her breathing coming in gasps.

Her heart pounded with fright and her head raged with a headache, not knowing what to think.

Somehow, she calmed down slightly even though she had silent tears streaming down her face.

She looked at her clock through blurred eyes, trembling.

01:00am

Sakura groaned as she brought her knees close to her and hugged them tightly, her tears soaking into the sheet as she softly cried.

After a while of crying, she seemed to calm down with heavy, shuddering sighs.

Trembling still, she sidled out of bed and dressed before she quietly walked down the stairs and left her house, going for a walk to hopefully take her mind off things.

* * *

OK, yes, this chapter was depressing, especially Sakura's and Kira's dreams.

The next chapter hopefully won't be as depressing, I'll try and add some happy stuff in it.

I'm not sure what to call the next chapter, but each character reveals something about their feelings or past, some even both, so title suggestions would be great.

Well, hopefully, this chapter was ok and I'll try and make the next less depressing.

Ja ne!


	6. Truth Be Told

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
**Dreams**_

**  
Chapter 6 - Truth be told**

Kuro walked through the training grounds that night, a cold breeze softly whipping at his storm black hair, his electric yellow eyes shining in the moonlight.

He couldn't sleep for some reason, and he usually slept quite well, but, that night was different.

He wore a black trench coat that was quite warm and it flowed around his ankles as he walked slowly.

Everything seemed peaceful that night, especially the velvet heavens that were stricken with clear stars and a full moon.

He stopped as he came to the training posts with a thoughtful expression and a sigh.

He remembered their first survival test clearly, and the first time he truly met Kira.

When they first met, Kira had appeared to be cold and heartless, but, when he truly got to know her, he found that she wasn't heartless, just afraid of others knowing what she was… afraid that others would find out she was a demon.

Kuro lent against the middle post, looking up to the star stricken heavens as he thought.

He couldn't help but think about Kira; her eyes, her soft side of her personality, her occasional smile.

He looked away from the sky, but, almost as soon as he did, he noticed someone sitting by the memorial stone.

"Kira-chan…" he whispered to him-self as his eyes filled with sadness.

Kuro slowly pushed him-self off the post and wandered over to Kira, slightly wary when he noticed her silent tears…

--

Shikamaru lay where team 10 always met, lying in the grass as he watched the stars.

Somehow, he felt peace as he watched them, but, his mind drifted to his blonde haired team mate.

Her smile, her lively personality, her eyes, her soft blonde hair; he thought she was perfect, even if he was lazy.

He sighed, closing his eyes before he sat up.

Shikamaru stared at he ground before his feet, taking note of the shadows with a troubled expression.

Even something as small and thin as a blade of grass could cast a shadow, no matter how much light there was.

'Maybe I'll ask Ino when I next see her…there's only 4 days left until the festival…' Shikamaru thought.

He sighed after a moment as he stood, shaking his head.

"Ah, who am I kidding, she wouldn't want to go with me. It's all too troublesome" he sighed.

"What's all too troublesome?" giggled a very familiar voice from behind him.

Shikamaru froze for a moment, a blush rising as he spun around to meet Ino's cerulean blue eyes…

--

Meanwhile, Coda leant against the railing of a bridge, staring at the still water below as he watched the reflection of the star stricken heavens.

Tears left glistening tracks down his face as they streamed from his midnight blue eyes, falling onto the railing as he held a white orchid in his hands.

"Happy Birthday…Mom…" he muttered as he dropped the orchid into the water and watched it float slowly down the river.

He sighed heavily as he trembled slightly at a cold breeze.

"Coda-kun…" said a very familiar voice.

He looked up and met Sakura's emerald green eyes, his own eyes widening with surprise for a moment before they saddened and looked back to the water.

"Are you ok, Coda-kun?" Sakura asked, walking up to him.

He gave a weak smile, "Yeah, I'm…ok" he lifted his hand and wiped away his tears with the back of it.

'He's…crying…'

_Yeah…I wonder what's wrong; didn't he mutter something about his mother?_

"Crying…it can't bring back anyone…especially the dead…" Coda said, muttering the last three words.

_The dead?!_

Sakura's eyes widened slightly, "What do you mean by, 'the dead'?"

--

Kira sat in front of the memorial stone, staring at her parents names as tears rolled down her face, clear sadness showing in her eyes.

'I hope…WhiteTail-sama's…ok' she thought with a heavy sigh.

"Kira-chan…" said a very familiar voice from behind her.

Kira flinched slightly at the sudden voice, but, as she realized who it was standing about a meter behind her, she quickly got to her feet and raced over to Kuro.

She crashed into him and sobbed into his chest, hugging him as if she was afraid he would disappear.

Kuro blushed slightly, but, as Kira sobbed, he wrapped his arms around her and held her closely.

"Hey…it's ok, it's ok…what's wrong, huh?" Kuro asked as he sat Kira down, but not letting go of her.

For a while, Kira just sobbed as Kuro held her, but after a while, she shook her hear, her sobs settling.

"I-It's nothing…"

"It must be something if you're crying"

Kira was silent for a moment before she sighed, her breath shuddering.

"…J-just…a nightmare…" she finally said.

Kuro smiled with a relieved sigh, "Is that all? You had me worried for a moment. I thought you were crying because WhiteTail-sama had…well…you know"

He didn't want to say it in case it upset Kira even more.

Kira paused for a moment before she leant further into Kuro's chest, "He won't…I know he won't…but, I'm scared I'll lose you…" she whispered.

Kuro blushed slightly as she said this, but hugged her slightly tighter.

"Why do you say that?"

Kira blushed slightly as she thought about her reply, but finally decided to explain the dream.

"Ah…" was Kuro's only reply as Kira finished.

"…But, I've had worse dreams than that…much worse…" Kira said.

Kuro looked at her with concern before he looked up at the stars.

"If it makes you feel any better, would you like to go to the festival with me?"

Kira looked at him with surprise as she felt a blush rise; luckily it was dark.

She suddenly smiled, "That'd be nice"

Kuro smiled back, "Great!"

Kira was still blushing as she stood, helping Kuro to his feet.

"C'mon, you can walk me home"

--

"I-Ino…?!" Shikamaru stammered, a blush hidden on his face from the darkness of the night.

Ino smiled, thinking he was cute with his bewildered expression as she walked up to him.

"Hey…why are you up so early…or late or, whatever…" Shikamaru asked, slightly nervous.

Ino laughed slightly, "I couldn't sleep; you?"

"Yeah, same…I couldn't sleep" Shikamaru replied, rubbing the back of his head.

'She looks beautiful…as always' he thought, looking at her with dark, thoughtful eyes.

Ino blushed at his gaze, her eyes locking with his dark and thoughtful ones.

Shikamaru looked away for a moment as he looked up at the stars with a thoughtful expression.

Ino walked closer to him and hugged him, placing her head on his shoulder.

Shikamaru looked at Ino with surprise, blushing as his heart accelerated.

"You looked like you needed a hug…" Ino said simply.

Shikamaru was silent for a moment before he smiled slightly and slowly wrapped his arms around Ino, embracing her in a hug.

Ino felt a blush rise as his arms wrapped around her.

"You looked like you needed a hug too" was Shikamaru's explanation.

Ino laughed slightly with a smile, closing her eyes, "Thank you, Shika-kun"

Shikamaru smiled, but only briefly before something crossed his mind.

"Ino-chan…"

"Mmm…"

"D-Do you want to…go to the festival…w-with me?" he asked.

Ino smiled with a heavy sigh, "Yeah…that'd be nice" she whispered.

Shikamaru hugged Ino slightly tighter, softly kissing her forehead.

"Thank-you" he whispered.

Ino blushed furiously before they ended the embrace.

"C'mon, I'll walk you home" Shikamaru said, wrapping an arm around her to keep her warm.

--

"What do you mean by, 'the dead'?" Sakura asked, wary but curious.

Coda was silent for a while, thinking about his reply before he briefly looked at Sakura.

He sighed and looked back at the water, "My mother became ill after my birth. She managed to hide it until I was two, but, that's when she died…" he whispered, his words filled with dread and remorse as he spoke each one.

Sakura felt like she had been hit in the gut as her eyes widened with even more surprise.

"Coda-kun…"

"My father…he hated me for it. He always said that I should have been the one to die. He never trusted me, always locked me in my room if I ever brought up something to do with the subject of my mothers death.

I was always beaten, too, but, I guess I'm lucky that he disappeared suddenly one day; he just left the house and never came back. I was left alone, left to fend for myself. But, so help me, if I ever see that bastard again…" he stopped and his fists clenched, his body trembling with anger.

Sakura watched him with pity and remorse, not saying anything as she got slightly closer to him before she wrapped her arms around him and embraced him in a hug, closing her eyes.

Coda looked at her for a moment, wonder in his eyes as a blush rose.

Sakura felt him stir in her embrace, but, as she was about to let go, his arms wrapped around her and pulled her close.

"Thank you…Sakura-chan" he whispered.

Sakura felt a blush rise as he hugged her, but, after a moment, she relaxed and placed her head on his shoulder.

"Let's just…stay like this for a while" she whispered to him, taking in his warmth that radiated from him.

Coda smiled with a slight nod.

Although neither of them wanted to admit it to each other, they liked this very much, and as much as they wanted to stay like this, they knew it had to end soon.

After a while, they pulled away, light blushes concealed on their faces by the darkness.

"Well, I guess we'd better get you home, Sakura-chan" Coda said, looking down at the water.

Sakura nodded, "Yeah. C'mon, you can walk me home" she started walking, but stopped when Coda didn't follow.

She turned around to find Coda looking down at the water with a thoughtful expression.

"Coda-kun…"

Coda looked up before he smiled slightly and walked after Sakura, together walking to her house.

No one said anything along the way, but they didn't have to; they enjoyed each others company, but, before they knew it, they were at Sakura's house.

"Well, here we are" Coda said as they stopped at Sakura's doorstep.

"Yeah," She said quietly. They didn't know what else to say.

"I guess I'd better go" Coda said.

Sakura nodded, "Thanks for walking me home"

Coda smiled briefly before he turned to walk back down the street, but turned back to Sakura.

"Hey, Sakura-chan…d-do you want to go to the festival with me?" he asked, walking up to her.

Sakura's heart nearly skipped a beat as she stared at him with surprise.

"I-It's ok if you don't want to, I-I understand…just, I-I…uh…" Coda looked down, thinking of what he'd say.

"Of course I'll go with you" was Sakura's reply.

Coda's head snapped up, a blush concealed on his face.

They were so close. She could easily lean in. He could easily lean in.

After a moment of shock, he smiled softly and leant in, softly kissing her on the cheek.

"Arigato, Sakura-chan" he whispered before he straightened.

Sakura was speechless as a blush rose, but it was concealed by the darkness.

"What time should I pick you up, then?"

Sakura was too shocked to say anything for a moment before she looked into his midnight blue eyes.

"Uh…how's 7pm sound?"

He smiled, "Ok, I'll pick you up about 7pm the night of the festival, Sakura-chan" he gave her a brief hug before he walked off down the street and Sakura was left staring after him.

…_Okay…even I'm speechless._

Sakura was quiet, staring into the darkness where he had disappeared.

After a while, she realized she was standing outside and entered her house, however, not quite back to reality.

* * *

Woo, chapter 6!

I like this one, personally; I hope you like it too!

I'd like reviews for this one cause I only got 1 for the last one. I know chapter 5 was depressing, but I hope this one makes up for it!

Well, hope it's good!

Ja ne!


	7. One Day Left

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Sakura  
**Dreams**_

**  
Chapter 7 – One Day Left**

2 days had passed and, with merely a day left till the festival, spirits were held high as the streets of Konoha bustled.

Although Sakura was talking with Ino at her flower shop, she didn't speak of going to the festival with Coda, nor did Ino say anything about going with Shikamaru.

"Do you have anything planned for today, Sakura?" Ino asked after a long and silent pause.

"No, Tsunade-sama gave us all today, tomorrow, and a week after the festival off. Why?" Sakura said.

"Well, Ten-Ten, Hinata and I were going shopping for the festival, you know, to get something nice to wear for the night" Ino said.

"Oh, ok, well…sure. I guess I'll come" Sakura replied.

"Great. Well, the others are meeting us here soon, so we'll go when the others arrive-" Ino cut off as the door opened.

"I didn't expect them to be here so soon" Ino said, but, found that it wasn't Ten-Ten or Hinata.

"Kira-chan? What're you doing here?" Sakura asked.

"Hokori is such a klutz. During training he fell just as I lunged at him and I nearly sliced his neck open. Tsk, the idiot" Kira said, leaning against the counter.

"Just as well Kuro-kun was there to save his clumsy ass" Kira mumbled afterwards.

Ino and Sakura looked at each other when Kira added 'kun' to Kuro's name.

"Since when do you add 'kun' to Kuro-san's name?" Sakura asked.

Kira blushed slightly as she looked for Sakura to Ino before her head hung and her brow furrowed slightly as she thought of a reply.

Ino giggled slightly, "So, you're going out with him now?" she said, trying to stir Kira.

"No, just to the festival, Ino" Kira said, giving Ino a bone chilling glare out of the corner of her eye.

Ino stiffened slightly at the glare from her wolf eye.

"Well, if you're going to the festival with him, you're going to need a dress right?" Sakura said.

At Sakura's words, something seemed to flick in Ino's mind as she smiled maliciously.

"Well then, you can come shopping with me, Sakura, Ten-Ten and Hinata" she said.

Kira growled, "There's no way in damn hell that's going to happen!"

Once Kira said this, Ten-Ten and Hinata walked in, looking slightly startled at the sight of Kira.

"Oh, good you're here! Now we can go" Ino said brightly.

"Ok, but, what's Kira-san doing here?" Ten-Ten asked.

"Well, she's actually coming with us" Ino replied.

Ten-Ten and Hinata looked shocked, not noticing Kira's murderous glare she was giving Ino, looking like she was going to rip Ino apart.

"C'mon then, we'd better get going" Sakura sighed.

Ino smiled with glee as she, Ten-Ten and Hinata exited, but, Kira didn't move.

"Are you ok, Kira-chan?" Sakura asked.

"I'm…going to kill Ino!" Kira snarled in reply.

Sakura sighed, shuddering slightly as her murderous tone.

"Come on, we'd better catch up to Ino before she comes back for us"

Kira was silent, not budging for a moment before she followed Sakura, still completely silent.

--

Meanwhile, Kuro, Shikamaru and Coda were at the training grounds; Kuro and Coda sat in a tree Shikamaru sat at the base of it.

"So, have you guys got someone to go to the festival with?" Kuro asked.

"Yeah, I'm going with Sakura-chan. What about you guys?" Coda asked.

"Heh, Sakura…well, I'm going with Ino" Shikamaru said.

Coda almost fell out of the tree laughing.

"What's so funny?" Shikamaru asked sourly.

"…N…Nothing, don't worry" Coda said, suppressing his laughter.

"What about you Kuro?" Shikamaru asked.

"Kira-chan…" was his reply.

"Tsk, no offence, Kuro, but she's troublesome-" Shikamaru didn't get much further with his sentence when a katana embedded itself in the tree next to Shikamaru's neck.

"Shikamaru, I will ask you not to say such about Kira-chan as a team mate of hers and as a good friend" Kuro said.

Shikamaru sighed, but never the less took back what he said.

Kuro reached down and took back his katana, re-sheathing it before he leapt down.

"Well, there's really nothing to do is there?" Coda said.

Kuro shook his head, "I would go and find Kira-chan, but she's probably still pissed off at Hokori, the clumsy idiot; I think I'll just give her some space and see her later"

Shikamaru, once again, sighed, "Yeah, Ino's all hyper because there's only a day left till the festival, I think I'll find her later on, if not I'll see her tomorrow"

"Well, in that case, let's go and get something to eat" Coda said, leaping down from the tree.

Shikamaru stood, stretching for a moment before he followed the other two to the ramen bar.

--

Kira stood by the door of the clothes store Ino had dragged her into.

She was fuming inside and felt like tearing Ino to shreds, but she knew she couldn't.

"Don't worry, Kira-chan, I'm sure you'll find something" Ino chimed brightly.

Kira suppressed a growl as she looked away from Ino.

Sakura watched Kira with concern before she turned back to the red and white dress she was looking at.

It was a white halter neck and had a red and blossom pink flower pattern down the side.

She smiled to her self before she looked up at Kira, who was looking down at the ground before her feet.

Sakura sighed and walked up to Kira.

"Don't worry, I'll pay for this dress and you can come with me" Sakura said.

Kira nodded with a small smile of appreciation.

Sakura paid for the dress and walked back to Kira.

"Ino, Kira-chan and I are going, we'll catch up later" Sakura called to Ino.

"What?! No, no, no, Kira hasn't even chosen a dress yet" Ino said.

Sakura was about to say something when Kira held a hand up.

"Actually, Ino, I've already got a dress, so there's really no need" and with those words said, Kira turned and exited, leaving a bewildered Ino and a surprised Sakura behind.

"Whoa, hold on a sec Kira-chan, you didn't tell me you already have a dress" Sakura said, catching up to Kira.

Kira seemed to smile, "Well, it's not exactly mine…it was my mothers"

Sakura fell silent for a while, just walking with Kira before she said something.

"What does it look like?"

Kira sighed before she started to explain the dress, spending the whole afternoon with Sakura until the sun had started setting.

--

Kuro, Shikamaru and Coda walked down the sun stricken streets of Konoha.

They had just been lazing around together after they had lunch.

"Well, I should probably head off; my dad's probably been looking for me. Ah, too troublesome" Shikamaru sighed.

"Alright, well, we'll see you tomorrow if Ino hasn't stolen you" Kuro smiled.

Shikamaru sighed, waving a hand in goodbye as he left.

Coda laughed slightly as he continued to walk with Kuro.

"Well, today was kind of fun" Coda said.

"Heh, I guess…I would've liked to see Kira-chan though" Kuro said, putting his hands behind his head as he walked.

"Yeah…I wanted to see Sakura-chan" Coda sighed, but, something caught his eye as they passed a shop.

"I'll catch up with you later, ok?" Coda said, slowly walking over to the shop window.

"Uh…ok, I'll see you tomorrow if Sakura hasn't stolen you" Kuro said.

Coda gave a small laugh, turning to wave Kuro off before he turned back to examining the pink diamond necklace on the rose gold chain that hung in the sunlight…

* * *

Yay, chapter 7!  
Sorry it took so long, I just haven't had any motivation lately.  
But only a week until I go on a CRUISE!! So I'll try to get the next chapter up asap!  
Btw, I know many will be on holidays, but could you all please try and comment!  
Thank you!

Ja ne!


	8. Festival Night

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Music Lyrics/Inner Sakura_

**Chapter 8 – Festival**

The day of the festival came quickly, even that afternoon, for most.

It had been spent buying last minute gifts and flowers for dater or loved ones, or just by spending the day with friends, family, or lovers.

It was about 6:15pm that night and Sakura lay on her bed, staring at her ceiling for no apparent reason.

She hadn't had a chance to talk to Coda that day, even though she saw him in the streets; every time they saw each other and walked towards each other, Kiba, who Coda was with, dragged him away, or Ino would drag her away, Kira following them silently.

Sakura had spent the day with Ino and Kira; Ino had pestered Kira about her dress, but Kira kept silent and had only really said 'you'll just have wait and see'.

Kira was like that, but, she had changed so much that she hadn't really changed at all.

She was so quiet a lot of the time, never really saying anything, but, knowing all too much. While she had travelled with her master, WhiteTail, training, not only had she gained an incredible knowledge and impressive power, she had seen all too much. And, because she was a demon, Kira's murderous air about her was more noticeable than it was 3 years ago, especially when she was angry, but, aside from all that, she was a nice person and wouldn't do anything to hurt those close to her, which seemed to cover it.

But, not many people knew she was a demon.

Sakura looked back at her clock.

6:20pm.

Sakura leapt off her bed and walked to her wardrobe, finally deciding to get ready instead of being lazy.

--

It was 6:55pm when he showed up at Sakura's house, 5 minutes before he was supposed to when Coda stood at Sakura's door, slightly nervous.

He was wearing black jeans, a midnight blue shirt and a long-sleeved flannelette shirt over that; it was nothing too dressy, but it was alright.

He knocked and Sakura's mother answered moments later.

"Ah, you must be Coda. How are you?" she asked.

"I'm fine, thank you, Ms. Haruno" Coda replied.

"Well, come in; Sakura will be ready in a minute" Sakura's mom said.

Coda entered the house and stood just in the doorway of the lounge room, just opposite the stairs; to Coda, it faintly smelt like cherry blossoms, which made him smile.

"MOM, IS CODA-KUN DOWN THERE?" Sakura called from upstairs.

"Yes, Sakura, he is!" Sakura's mom called back.

"HE'S NOT COMING UPSTAIRS, IS HE?!"

Sakura's mom put a finger over her lips, "Shush; yes, dear, he is!"

"NOO, I'M NOT READY YET!!" Sakura cried, and then there was a crash and a thud and Sakura's mom chuckled to her-self.

Coda looked up the stairs anxiously, wondering if Sakura was ok.

"I was just joking, Sakura!" Sakura's mom called up the stairs.

"FUNNY, MOM, REAL….WHOA!" There was another crash and Coda smiled, his gaze dropping to the ground before his feet as Sakura's mom started laughing; he was still worried about her, but, in a way, it was kind of funny.

"Are you done, mom?" Sakura asked after a few moments, sounding very close.

Coda's head snapped up and he looked over at the stairs, his eyes widening slightly as his jaw almost dropped at the sight of Sakura.

She wore a white halter-neck dress with a blossom pink and red flower pattern down one side; she also had here hair up.

"Hey" Sakura said as she looked over at Coda, smiling as she thought how cute he looked with his mouth slightly open.

"Sakura-chan…you…" he didn't get much farther then that when his voice failed him and he started stammering.

Sakura giggled with a smile and walked over to him, taking one of his hands and leading him to the door.

Coda blushed furiously as Sakura took his hand and the two exited the house moments later.

After a while of walking Coda sighed, still blushing, but not as furiously.

"Sakura-chan…you…look gorgeous…" Coda said, now blushing a furious crimson.

Sakura swore her heart skipped a beat as she blushed an equal crimson, "T-Thanks…Coda-kun; you don't look too bad your-self"

Coda rubbed the back of his head with his free hand; neither had let go of the other's hand when Sakura had lead him out of her house.

"Heh, well…it's nothing special…but, thanks" he said.

The rest of the walk to the festival was spent in silence, but, the two enjoyed each other's company and, even if they didn't admit it, the warmth of each other's hand.

"Well, here we are" Coda said as they arrived.

"Yeah…" Sakura said, looking around before she sighted two familiar faces, dancing, "Oh, there's Ino and Shikamaru!" she said before heading over quickly, her hand slipping from Coda's.

They both noticed and didn't like the feeling of not having the other to hold, but they didn't want to have Ino make a huge fuss if she saw, so Coda just followed Sakura.

"Ino, Shikamaru, I didn't know you two were going to the festival together?" Sakura said as she walked up to the two, who were dancing a minute ago until Sakura and Coda came up.

Ino went crimson, "Yeah, well, we are…" she suddenly stopped blushing and noticed Coda behind Sakura.

"And I didn't know you two were going to the festival together either" Ino commented, making Sakura and Coda blush an equal crimson.

"Oh, wait, Kira-chan isn't here yet?" Sakura asked, looking around.

Ino shook her head, "I don't think so as I haven't seen her or Kuro yet"

Sakura thought for a moment, "Well, I guess we'll have to wait and see, but, for the meantime, Coda-kun and I are going to find the others, so we'll see you round" she waved as she started heading off with Coda.

Ino looked slightly puzzled for a moment as she watched the two go, "Do you think they're really going to find the others?"

"Beats me; now, where were we?" he smiled as his hand took Ino's and the two started dancing again.

--

Coda and Sakura walked through the crowd until they found a bench to sit on; they had passed Naruto, who got on well with Coda, Shino, Sai, Gaara, and a few of the girls standing to the side, talking with each other.

Coda sighed with a smile, "Naruto's a funny guy; he so energetic"

Sakura smiled, "That's my team mate for you, but, he's really nice; his dream's to become Hokage of Konoha"

Coda smiled softly, "Well, he's got my support; good luck to the kid"

Sakura watched Coda softly; his hair seemed softer as a soft breeze blew at it, making it sway, but, it was still longer and even more spiky than Naruto's, not to mention a beautiful brown.

"Coda-kun…" she started.

"Yeah…" he replied as he turned to her.

"Do you want to dance?" Sakura asked, blushing slightly.

Coda looked at her, slightly wide eyed with surprise at the question before he smiled, blushing quite a bit.

"Uh…s-sure" he said as the two got up.

Sakura took Coda's hand, the two blushing like crazy as she lead him out into the street.

For a few seconds, they just stood there, as nervous as ever before Coda placed his hands on Sakura's waist and Sakura wrapped her arms around his neck.

'You and Me' by Lifehouse had started playing as the two came together, the two slowly dancing to the song;

'_What day is it  
And in what month  
This clock never seemed so alive  
I can't keep up  
And I can't back down  
I've been losing so much time_

_'Cause it's you and me and all of the people  
With nothing to do  
Nothing to lose  
And it's you and me and all of the people  
And I don't know why  
I can't keep my eyes off of you_

_'All of the things that I want to say  
Just aren't coming out right  
I'm tripping inwards  
You got my head spinning  
I don't know where to go from here…_'

Sakura slowly pulled closer to Coda and rested her head on his shoulder, flushing a bright crimson as she closed her eyes.

Coda's grip around Sakura's waist tightened as he pulled her closer and blushed equally.

With bodies now as close as two lovers, the two danced on…

'_Cause it's you and me and all of the people  
With nothing to do  
Nothing to prove  
And it's you and me and all of the people  
And I don't know why  
I can't keep my eyes off of you_

_'There's something about you now  
That I can't quite figure out  
Everything she does is beautiful  
Everything she does is right  
_

By now, they seemed oblivious to the world, and only each other existed.

It was like the two were afraid to let go of each other, afraid that if they did, the other would disappear.

Sakura was too swept away that she failed to notice a certain 'Master' watching them from a nearby table.

"It's sweet, isn't it, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune commented as she watched the two dancing with bodies as close as two lovers…

Tsunade chuckled to herself, smiling, "Yes it is, Shizune, it is" she smiled…

_  
'You and me and all of the people  
With nothing to do  
Nothing to lose  
And it's you and me and all of the people  
And I don't know why  
I can't keep my eyes off of you_

_'You and me and all of the people  
With nothing to do  
Nothing to prove  
And it's you and me and all of the people  
And I don't know why  
I can't keep my eyes off of you_

_'What day is it  
And in what month  
This clock never seemed so alive…'_

The song ended and, even if neither admitted it, it ended all too soon.

"C'mon, we'll go and get something to eat. Are you hungry?" Coda asked.

Sakura nodded softly, "Yeah, I guess so"

Coda smiled slightly and took Sakura's hand, leading her to where the food was, but, the two were stopped when a certain sensei's rival showed up.

"Why, hello, my eternal rival's teammate!" Gai called out.

Coda looked slightly confused and disturbed.

"Uh…hi, Gai-sensei, how are you?" Sakura asked.

Gai gave them his trade mark thumbs up with a smile, "I'm doing great, in the spirit of youthfulness and festivities!"

"Who's this?" Coda whispered to Sakura.

"This is Gai-sensei, Kakashi-sensei's rival" Sakura explained.

Coda merely nodded.

Then, out of the blue, Gai's favourite student popped up, "Gai-sensei!" Lee called.

Gai turn his attention to Lee.

"Lee!" he yelled.

Lee soon noticed that Sakura and Coda were there too.

"Oh, hello, Sakura-san, who's this with you?" Lee said, fortunately, he didn't notice them holding each other's hand.

"This is Himitsu Coda-kun" Sakura said.

"Hi, I'm Rock Lee" Lee said, giving Coda thumbs up and a smile.

Coda looked confused and disturbed by the way Lee and Gai looked almost the same.

"Gai-sensei, I've been having a lot of fun in the spirit of festivities!" Lee told him.

Gai was so happy for Lee that he gave him a special thumbs-up with a super "flawless" smile.

"Did you do those dances I taught you?" he asked.

"I did Gai-sensei!" Lee answered. Gai got one of his "great" ideas.

"Lee, do the dances for me right now, so I can see your spirits of youthfulness!" he said.

Coda and Sakura looked extremely confused and looked at each other.

Rock Lee literally jumped at the opportunity to perform his "dances" for his "true love", Sakura.

"Okay Gai-sensei!" he agreed.

After Rock Lee started "dancing" Sakura and Coda wished they had left before he had, and it was probably better not to describe it.

Gai was crying like a baby; he was so proud of his student.

Other people there including Coda and Sakura, were crying too, but for an entirely different reason.

Gai wiped the tears from his eyes. "He's so talented; he's like the first bloom of a lotus blossom at the start of spring!"

After Lee finished his first "dance" Gai applauded him.

"Bravo Lee, bravo!" he yelled. Gai clapped loudly.

Rock Lee took a couple of bows.

"Encore, encore!" Gai yelled.

There was a unison shout of "NO!" from the surrounding crowd.

Sadly, the only one who Lee would pay attention to was his idol.

"Yes Gai-sensei! I shall do another!" he announced.

Coda and Sakura went completely pale.

Gai leaped next to Lee.

"This time, I will accompany you!" he told him.

Lee's eyes widened.

"Oh thank you, Gai-sensei." He said.

Coda now felt dizzy and sick, and the ground started to rise up to meet him.

Sakura felt Coda's grip on her hand loosen and slip from hers and, before she knew it…

Thud!

Coda was lying on the ground; he had just passed out.

"Coda-kun!" Sakura exclaimed as she slipped her arms under his and started to drag him over to the table Ten-Ten sat at, fortunately slipping away from Gai and Lee un-noticed.

When she got there, Ten-Ten looked up and noticed Sakura with an unconscious Coda.

"Sakura, what happened?" she asked as she ran over to them.

"We saw…Lee…and Gai 'dancing'" Sakura replied as Ten-Ten took Coda's feet and helped her lay him on a bench.

"Oh, no, I told them they would make someone faint if they did that in public" Ten-Ten said as they sat with Coda, Sakura placing his head on her lap.

Sakura laughed slightly, however as Coda started muttering in his unconscious state.

"I feel sorry for you, though, Ten-Ten. You guys are Lee's team mates; you must have had to sit through that a lot longer than us" Sakura said.

Ten-Ten went pale and nodded grimly, "Please, don't remind us"

Sakura laughed slightly, but, was then distracted when something stirred in her lap.

"Ah, Coda-kun…you're ok" Sakura said as she softly ran her fingers through his unruly hair.

Coda slowly opened his eyes with a slight nod, but his eyes met Sakura's and he became transfixed.

"Have I died and gone to heaven, because I swear I see an angel" Coda said.

Sakura giggled, "No, Coda-kun, you haven't"

"It feels like it" Coda said, never taking his gaze from Sakura's eyes.

Ten-Ten laughed slightly, "Looks like you've picked up a smooth talker, Sakura"

Sakura smiled and Coda closed his eyes with a content smile as Sakura continued to run her fingers through his hair before he sighed and sat up.

"Did we ever get that food?" Coda asked as he looked around.

Sakura shook her head with a smile, "No, but the buffet's right over there"

Coda looked over at the buffet and smiled, leaping over the back of the bench.

"I'll be right back" he said as he walked over to where Neji was.

Sakura watched him for a moment before something came to mind.

"Have you seen Kira-chan at all, Ten-Ten?" she asked.

Ten-Ten thought for a moment before her face lit up with a smile, "Come with me"

Sakura looked puzzled, but followed Ten-Ten for a moment, not going too far, but her eyes widened slightly as they peeked around a corner.

Kira and Kuro were up against a tree, Kira leaning up against Kuro in each other's embrace.

Kira wore a black dress that had a sky-blue and white pattern up the side, her hair tied up and her fringe covering her right eye.

Sakura smiled before she and Ten-Ten walked back to the table, where Coda was waiting for Sakura with…

"Cotton candy!" Sakura beamed as she took one with a grin.

"I thought you might like it" Coda smiled.

Sakura giggled as she took a bite of her cotton candy.

Suddenly, Coda took Sakura's hand and started to lead her away, "Come with me"

Sakura was confused and shrugged back at Ten-Ten, who was looking confused too, but Sakura followed Coda silently and let him lead her away from the festival.

"Fireworks in 10 minutes! Don't miss it! Get ready for a great spectacle!" said someone in the background with a microphone.

"Coda-kun, where are we going, we're going to miss the fireworks!" Sakura exclaimed.

Coda smiled, "Don't worry, we won't miss a thing" he said.

As soon as he did, though, he started running, dragging a stumbling Sakura with him.

'He's fast…I'm not fast enough to keep up' she thought, but noticed Coda wasn't in front of her any more.

As she started to look around, someone swept her off her feet and started running again.

"Coda…kun…" Sakura whispered, but noticed they were now going up hill.

"Close your eyes" Coda whispered.

Sakura looked at him, confused, but closed her eyes never the less.

After a moment, she felt Coda stop and put her on her own feet.

"You can open your eyes now, Sakura-chan" he whispered.

Sakura opened her eyes and gasped...

* * *

Yay, chapter 8 is up!

And, it's a cliff-hanger. Where has Coda brought her, and what is it that makes Sakura gasp?

Well, I'll try and get the next chapter asap before tomorrow, which is when I go on my cruise, but if I don't, you'll have to put up with the cliff-hanger until I get back, which will be on the 2nd of May, but while I'm on the cruise I'll prepare the 9th chapter so it's ready to write up and post when I get back!

Well, thanks for reading, I hope you like it!

Ja ne!

BloodyBlueMoon


	9. Fireworks and?

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Song Lyrics/Inner Sakura_

**  
Chapter 9 – Fireworks and…**

"You can open your eyes now, Sakura-chan" he whispered.

Sakura opened her eyes and gasped.

"Coda-kun…this is beautiful; I can see the whole festival from here!" Sakura exclaimed as she saw the lights of the festival beneath her. She also saw the Hokage Mountain in the distance, looming over the village.

Coda smiled, "It's nice up here, isn't it?" he asked as he sat down.

"How did you know about this place? You've only been here about a week, while I've been here all my life and I've never noticed this place!" Sakura said, still perplexed as she sat beside him.

"I found it the other day, actually. I was just walking around the village and came across this place.

They went quiet, not knowing what else to say.

Coda glanced over at Sakura and noticed she hadn't really eaten much of her cotton candy, and she didn't notice him glance over at her.

Coda smiled to him-self and leant over, taking a huge bite out of her cotton candy before he quickly recoiled and smiled.

"Oi!" Sakura exclaimed as she turned to him, but started giggling.

Coda looked confused, "What?"

"You have some cotton candy on your nose" Sakura explained as she reached out with her index finger and wiped it off his nose before licking it off her finger with a smile.

Coda looked at her with utter surprise as he flushed an extremely furious crimson and his heart accelerated, skipping a beat or two; luckily it was dark.

After a moment of awkward silence, the two looked back to where the festival was.

Coda was leaning back on his elbows, glancing at Sakura occasionally before he gathered enough courage and placed his hand on hers.

Sakura froze as she blushed furiously before she looked over at Coda, checking to see if it was an accident, but there was no fault seen in his eyes.

Sakura smiled happily with a relieved sigh as she went back to watching the festival, oblivious to a certain person in the bushes only a few meters away.

--

"Tsunade-sama, are you sure it's wise to be here? I mean, maybe we should just leave them be?" Shizune whispered.

Tsunade held a hand up, "Shush, Shizune; I want to see what happens!"

Shizune sighed, "If anything happens" she muttered under her breath.

--

Coda and Sakura watched in silence, but Coda sat up abruptly when the lights of the festival went off.

"Oh, the lights go out, maybe the fireworks will start now!" Sakura exclaimed as she watched eagerly and, sure enough, the fireworks started moments later.

Sakura felt Coda shuffle next to her and felt something warm being placed over her shoulders.

"I know it's not much, but you look cold" Coda said with a smile; he had placed his flannelette shirt over her.

"Won't you be cold?" Sakura asked.

Coda shook his head, "I'll be alright. Oh, which reminds me…" he rummaged in his pocket for a moment before he pulled out a slim, white box with a blossom pink ribbon.

"Here" he said simply as he gave it to Sakura.

Sakura looked at Coda as he leant back on his elbows again, watching Sakura intently.

She opened the present and gasped.

What was inside was the most gorgeous necklace she had ever seen; blossom pink diamonds hung from a rose gold chain, longest at the front and studded into the chain around the back.

"Coda-kun…it's beautiful…" Sakura said, unable to say anything else.

Coda shifted slightly so he was behind her, took the necklace from the box and brought it up to Sakura's neck, clipping it on before he shifted back to where he was before.

Sakura marveled at the necklace for a moment and how it gleamed in the moonlight before she turned back to Coda, who was sitting up and watching the sky.

Suddenly, Sakura leapt at him, forcing him onto his back and hugged him tightly, burying her face in the side of his neck.

Coda went a furious crimson, but it soon died down and he smiled softly, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Thank you, Coda-kun, thank you so much!" Sakura whispered.

Coda could feel her warm breath against his collar bone, which sent a tingle up his spine and caused his heart to race.

Coda smiled with a happy sigh.

Suddenly, Sakura raised her-self from him and looked into his midnight blue eyes with her emerald ones.

"Ah, I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…" she said nervously as she went to get off of him, but, something stopped her and she noticed he had his arms wrapped around her waist.

_Oh, he wants you to stay there!_ Inner Sakura giggled.

Sakura blushed furiously, 'Thank god it's dark' she thought even if the fireworks were still going.

Sakura looked into Coda's eyes as he watched her before she slowly lowered her-self back down next to Coda, once again burying her face in the side of his neck.

Coda sighed contently as he closed his eyes; this night was perfect and nothing could ruin it.

--

Meanwhile, Tsunade and Shizune watched the two figures contently.

"Well, it is getting interesting…" Tsunade commented.

Shizune sighed, "Can we just go and leave them in peace?"

Tsunade sighed irritably, "Not yet"

Shizune rolled her eyes and leant against a tree.

--

After a while, Sakura raised herself from Coda and looked at his face.

He looked so peaceful, like he was…sleeping.

"Hey, Coda-kun, are you awake?" she asked as she nudged at him.

"Mmph?" he mumbled back, opening his eyes slightly.

Sakura giggled slightly.

"I'm dreaming, right?" he asked.

"Why would you be dreaming?" Sakura asked.

"Because I think I see an angel" Coda said.

Sakura giggled, "You sure are the talker aren't you, Coda-kun?"

Coda smiled.

"Do you think we should head back to the festival?" Sakura asked, not really wanting to.

Coda shook his head, "No…unless it's to get some more cotton candy" he grinned.

Sakura laughed, "Ok, we'll head back and get some more cotton candy, then we'll come back here, ok?"

Coda nodded, "Sounds good to me" he said as Sakura got off him and the two stood before heading back to the festival.

--

"Well, now they're gone; can we please go back to the festival?!" Shizune groaned.

"Damn and it was just getting good. Well, I guess you can go back to the festival, but I'm going to stay here" Tsunade said.

Shizune went red and headed back to the festival.

--

After a while, Coda and Sakura returned to the hill-top, cotton candy in hand and both grinning like children.

They sat down in the same spots and continued eating their cotton candy, enjoying each other's company and neither saying a word as they listened to the faint music in the back ground, which was 'You're All That I Have' by Snow Patrol.

It was probably getting close to midnight now, maybe even past, but no-one cared, they were all enjoying the festival all too much.

Sakura looked over at Coda, who was watching the stars intently with a thoughtful expression.

She looked at his cotton candy and found he had eaten a bit less than half.

She smiled and leant over, taking a bite out of it before she returned to her spot, smiling.

Coda looked over at her, surprised and with a playful glare.

Sakura giggled, "It was pay back for eating mine"

Coda thought for a moment, "Well, in that case…" he smiled, leant over, and ate the rest of her cotton candy quickly.

Sakura started at him, dumbfounded as he quickly ate the rest of his, not letting Sakura eat it first.

She glared at him playfully, "Oh, that's it; you're going down, Himitsu!" she said as she leapt at him and knocked him backwards, and with enough momentum that forced the two to roll down the other side of the hill, which went for a moment and they stopped at the next flat area before the hill went down again, Sakura on top of Coda.

"I told you were going down!" she laughed, neither really expecting what just happened.

Coda smiled up at Sakura, who held him to the ground with a smile of her own.

"You know, if I could reach up and take a star for every time you have made me smile, the entire night sky would be in the palm of my hands" Coda said softly.

Sakura smiled, "It's a lovely gesture, but I don't think you'd need to"

"And why is that?" Coda asked.

"Because all I have to do is look into your eyes" Sakura smiled.

Coda grinned with a faint laugh, "I think I'm rubbing off on you"

"Oh; how so?" Sakura asked.

"You call me the sweet talker when you're becoming one yourself" he smiled.

Sakura giggled and, before she knew it, Coda flipped them so he was over Sakura.

He gave a small smile at Sakura, neither knowing of the Sanin and Hokage watching them.

--

"I was wondering where you'd got to" said a very familiar voice.

"Shush, Jiraiya!" Tsunade whispered harshly.

Jiraiya looked slightly offended as he came to Tsunade's side, and she pointed in the direction of the two 'friends'.

"Oh, so that's why you wanted me to keep quiet. Heh, what a sight" Jiraiya smirked.

"It's getting interesting, so keep quiet and watch" Tsunade said and the two turned their attention back to Coda and Sakura.

--

As they looked into each other's eyes, Coda felt like he was in a forest of Cherry Blossoms on a clear day, while Sakura felt like she was in a forest, lying in a clearing and watching the heavens on a clear night.

'What is this feeling? Why is he looking at me like that; why am I looking at him like that…do I…?' Sakura thought frantically.

They were so close. She could easily lean in. He could easily lean in. Any thing could happen…and that's when it happened.

Sakura found that Coda had leant in quite a lot and his mouth was inches from hers; they could feel each other's breath on the others lips, almost pleading, needing, wanting, craving…

Just as they're lips brushed, something rustled in the nearby bushes and their heads snapped away, looking in the direction of the Sanin and Hokage.

Sakura sighed, "It was probably just a bird, or a rabbit"

Coda turned back to Sakura, "Yeah, probably…"

But he couldn't help but wonder.

There was a moment's pause before the silence between them became awkward and Coda stood up, helping Sakura up with surprising ease

"C'mon, we'll go back to the festival for a while then I'll walk you back home" Coda said.

Sakura nodded before the two headed back to the festival, each hand in hand.

--

Tsunade watched the two leave with annoyance before she looked back at Jiraiya, who was lying on his back, feeling, and looking, completely stupid.

"Thanks a lot, you klutz, and it was just getting really good!" Tsunade said as she advanced on Jiraiya, who was now scrambling to his feet.

"Uh…Tsunade…um…I…I…"

"You're doomed, Jiraiya!"

Jiraiya swallowed heavily, 'I guess I have to try'

"Do you want to dance?" Jiraiya asked, hoping not to be pummeled.

Tsunade froze in her tracks, "Huh?"

When he wasn't pummeled, he asked again, "Do you want…to dance?"

It took Tsunade a moment to take all this in before a blush crossed her face, "Uh…o-ok…wait, NO! You're a dead man Jiraiya!" Tsunade cried as she went after Jiraiya, who was running away from her.

'Well, it was worth a try, even if I'm used to her rejecting me' he thought as Tsunade chased after him, 'I'm never going to get used to her strength, however!'

--

Coda and Sakura arrived back at the festival a while later.

"One last dance?" Coda asked.

Sakura nodded, "One last dance, then you can walk me home"

Coda nodded and walked out with her into the street, looking for a spot, but, Sakura stopped as she recognized two people…kissing?

"Hey, is that…Ino and Shikamaru…kissing?" Coda asked as he noticed too.

Sakura nodded with bewilderment before she smiled, "Ino's not going to have a peaceful day tomorrow…"

Coda looked at her, confused, but then smiled with a slight laugh.

"Ok, c'mon, let's go and have that dance, shall we?" he asked as he tugged her away.

Sakura giggled, "You just want to hold me again, don't you?"

Coda flushed crimson and his voice failed him; now he could only avert her eyes.

Sakura giggled once again, "Come on then, we'll go and have that last dance" she said as the two headed out more to find a spot.

When they finally did, however, 'Before It's Too Late' by Goo Goo Dolls was playing and, once again, they were as nervous as ever before they finally came together, Sakura wrapping her arms around his neck and Coda wrapping his around her waist, pulling closer to each other as the song played;

'_I wander through fiction  
To look for the truth  
Buried beneath all the lies  
I stood at a distance to feel who you are  
Hiding myself in your eyes_

_'Hold on before it's too late  
Or until we leave this behind  
Don't fall just be who you are  
It's all that we need in our lives_

_'Now the risk that might break you  
Is the one that would save  
A life you don't live is still lost  
So stand on the edge with me  
Hold back your fear and see  
Nothing is real till it's gone…'  
_

Sakura, once again, placed her head on Coda's shoulder and sighed happily, closing her eyes as his grip around her waist tightened.

They were once again as close as two lovers, taking in the heat of one another's body as they danced softly, maybe even closer if it was possible.

Coda thought she was gorgeous and loved everything about her, even her forehead, but he was too busy staring into her emerald eyes to notice it.

Sakura could feel his warm breath brushing over her neck, flowing over it, and onto her shoulder. It was almost pleading, needing, wanting, craving…loving. She sighed heavily and happily again, nuzzling into his shoulder further.

That feeling once again crept up on them; they felt afraid to let go of the other, afraid that if they did, the other would disappear, and they were, once again, completely oblivious to the world.

Only each other existed…only each other.

_  
'Hold on before it's too late  
Or until we leave this behind  
Don't fall just be who you are  
It's all that we need in our lives  
_

'_So live like you mean it  
And love till you feel it  
It's all that we need in our lives  
Stand on the edge with me  
Hold back your fear and see  
nothing is real till its gone_

_'Hold on before it's too late  
Or until we leave this behind  
Don't fall just be who you are  
It's all that we need in our lives_

_'It's all that I need in my life…'_

The song ended, and all too soon if you asked the two 'friends' as they separated.

"Well, I guess I'd better walk you home, huh?" Coda said.

Sakura nodded, "I guess so"

Coda gave her a small smile as they took each other's hand and walked to Sakura's house while one line of the song that had just been playing coursed through their minds.

_Nothing is real till it's gone…_

* * *

Well, here's chapter 9!

I was working on it all last night and edited it this morning, but, it'll be a while before I submit the next chapter because I'll be on a cruise for 10 days! WOOT! I'll be back on the 2nd, so I'll try and submit chapter 10 around the...5th or something...

Well, happy holidays people, and I'll be back in 10 days!

WOOT, CRUISE!

Lol, anyway...

Ja na!


	10. Something's Are Unexpected

"..." Talking  
'...' Thoughts  
_Inner Characters  
_**Emphasis**

**  
Chapter 10 ****– Something's are Unexpected**

With fingers laced together, the two figures walked down the quiet street, lost in their own thoughts.

They hadn't really gone to the festival, more like they had hung around its edge, watching the dancers and the fireworks from afar.

"I had a nice time tonight…" she said, slightly catching him off guard before he smiled.

"I'm glad, because I did too" he replied with an affectionate smile.

Kira blushed slightly as she averted her eyes from his with a faint smile.

The rest of the walk to her house was spent in silence, but a comfortable one, one where they enjoyed each other's company.

After a while, however, they reached her house, neither one wanting to part, but, just as Kuro was about to turn down the path that led to her house, Kira stopped him at the end of it.

"Wait here for a moment" she said before she ran down the path and entered her house.

She came back moments later, letting her hair down but kept the fringe over her right eye; she had changed into her normal black pants, but, this time, had a sky blue shirt on.

As she approached him, she took him by the hand and led him away from her house, and in no particular direction

"W-What are you doing, Kira-chan?" Kuro asked as he stumbled after her.

Kira looked back at him and gave a small smile, "I just decided that I didn't want to go home just yet; I'd rather go for a walk"

Kuro smiled, quickening his pace so he was walking by her side, "Lead the way, then"

Kira smiled softly, their fingers still laced together, un-wanting to let go as they were taken wherever their minds and legs took them.

--

Coda and Sakura walked to her house, hand in hand as a gentle breeze ruffled at their hair, but, it was gradually becoming harsh.

'It's getting cold…' Sakura thought as she leant against Coda's warm body.

"I think there's a storm coming, Sakura-chan" Coda said absentmindedly.

Sakura looked up at him and found he was looking up at the sky, which was now stricken with dark clouds.

_Looks like he's right…_

Their pace slowed as they walked, neither one wanting to part ways, neither one wanting to leave the other.

If it was possible, their pace slowed even more as the clouds blocked the once clear and star stricken sky, and it started raining lightly, gradually becoming heavier.

As they neared her street, the rain was now bucketing down, soaking them to the bone and making Coda's long hair droop over his face, covering his eyes.

Sakura giggled as he repeatedly tried to flip his hair out of his eyes, but the rain just pushed it back over his eyes.

After a moment, Coda turned to Sakura with an affectionate smile, never turning his gaze from hers for a while before he sighed happily and turned his gaze forward once more.

She couldn't see his eyes, but she knew something was wrong.

Sakura was about to ask, but was cut off when he spoke.

"I was at the training grounds, Sakura-chan…before I came to pick you up for the festival, and…on that memorial stone you have there…I…I found my father's name…that's what happened to the bastard…I had always wondered what had happened to him…and…now I know…" his voice was filled with so much guilt that Sakura felt like she was going to cry her-self.

Because of the rain that bucketed down and rolled over their faces, she couldn't tell if he was really crying or not, but, she knew something had been stirred in his heart, something...

"Are you ok?" Sakura asked, watching him with concern.

He smiled softly, "Yeah" was his only reply as they approached her house.

There was a long pause of silence as they walked slowly down her street towards her house.

_You know, now would be a good time to kiss him…_

'What?! Why?'

_Do I have to explain everything…?_

'No…but, maybe not now…'

_Why not?_

'Do I have to explain everything?'

…_touché_

It was only when Coda sighed that Sakura snapped back to reality.

_Maybe it would be __a good idea to kiss her before you go…_

'Maybe…but…if we stand in the rain any longer we're going to catch cold'

_Suit yourself…__but, if you don't think you should kiss her, at least tell her…_

'Tell her?'

_How you feel. You know you can tell her anything._

'…true…but I don't go into detail with that…'

_I know, but you should at least give her some hint that you love her._

'Alright…I'll think of something…'

They finally reached Sakura's house, both standing on the porch in silence, neither one wanting to leave the other's company.

"Well, here we are" Coda said.

"Yeah" Sakura replied quietly. They didn't know what else to say.

"I guess I'd better go" Coda said.

Sakura nodded, "Thanks for walking me home"

Coda smiled briefly before he turned to walk home in the bucketing rain.

Sakura opened her front door to walk inside before she paused, holding the door open and allowing the little light from inside to filter out, illuminating her face and the rain that was caught in it.

"Coda-kun…!" Sakura called after him.

Coda stopped and turned to face Sakura, already about 8 meters away from her house.

_His eyes…they're gorgeous when they're illuminated!_

"Umm…I-It's ok if you don't want to, but, b-because it's raining so heavily…w-would you like to s-stay the night…" Sakura asked, stuttering like Hinata did as she blushed.

Coda stood in the rain for a moment, searching her eyes for any fault or disbelief, but found none and smiled.

"T-That'd be…great, Sakura-chan" he replied as he slowly walked back to Sakura's house, where Sakura let him in and shut the door behind her-self.

"Mom must've left a light on for me and gone to sleep…I wonder what time it is" Sakura said as they entered the lounge room.

Sakura wandered over to the fire-place and lit it as Coda seated him-self on the couch before she straightened.

"I'll be back in a moment; I'm just going to change into something dryer and I'll try and find some of my dad's old clothes for you" she explained as she left the room.

Coda stared after her for a moment before he got up and seated him-self before the fire, staring into the dancing flames that reflected in his eyes.

He sighed after a moment and took a silver watch out of his pocket, opening it to examine the date he had engraved on the inside opposite the clock.

_**26**__**th**__** March…**_

--

Meanwhile, they found themselves walking through the park…and in the pouring rain, of course.

They were silent, neither of the team-mates knowing what to say to each other.

It was ironic, really; they knew each other so well, and yet they didn't know what to say to each other.

After a moment, however, Kira smiled.

"I wonder what Ino would think if she found out we had spent the night together…" she smiled.

Kuro smiled at the thought, "You really are evil; you know that?"

Kira grinned with a slight giggle, "And **you** know me all too well"

Kuro smiled softly before he turned his gaze to the stars.

Kira watched the ground pass under her feet as they walked, slowly entwining her fingers with his as they walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

_Now would be a good time to tell him…_

'Tell him what?'

_How you feel; you know you can talk to him about anything._

'That's different; besides, I'm not sure I'm ready to tell him'

_You know how he feels about you._

She ran a hand through her hair with a sigh, 'There's just so much going on in my mind…but…I'm scared…'

_Exactly. Who knows if he'll still be here next time?_

Kira bit back tears and shuddered, remembering the last time she lost control and took her demon form, 'No, I won't lose my-self next time…'

Kuro watched Kira out of the corner of his eye; she seemed so deep in thought, but he couldn't even begin to guess what she could be weighing so heavily on her mind.

'I should tell her how I feel…'

_She knows._

'I want her to know that there are people who care for her…people who want to stick by her…people who love her…'

_What good would it do? You know she's afraid to get close to anyone…you know she's scared of losing them…especially you__._

'I can live with that as long as she knows I would do anything for her'

He sighed and kicked a pebble aside, 'I just don't know how to make her see how much we care for her…how much **I** care for her'

He looked over at the team-mate he loved so much, "Kira-chan?"

"Mmm?" was her reply; you could tell she was caught up in her thoughts.

Kuro averted his gaze from her eyes, "Don't forget that we're here for you…and that **I'm** here for you"

Kira gave a small, affectionate smile as she turned back to him, "I know, Kuro-kun" she smiled, "Thank you"

He stopped and stared at his feet as he shuffled the dirt, "Kira-chan, you know I really like you, right? Well, it's ok if you don't feel the same way, but alongside me, there are people who care about you"

Kira gazed at him for a moment before she took a step forward and wrapped her arms around him, "You're so dramatic sometimes, you know?"

Kuro was surprised by the sudden movement, but he slid his arms around her and held her tight, more for her comfort than his own.

"As long as we're together there's no way I could forget how you feel" she grinned slightly, "But you'd better not forget how I feel"

"How do you feel?" he asked.

She smiled and pulled out of his arms as she turned and began walking further into the park, "Good question"

Kuro was confused as he stood there and watched her, "Huh?"

Her soft laughter drifted back to him as he jogged to catch up to her, but, as he neared and approached her, he found she had stopped and was looking out over the dock, the moonlight shimmering on the still surface of the water.

Kira's gaze had softened and the emotion in her eyes became pained and filled with guilt that tugged at her heart as old memories flooded into her mind, especially the ones that she just wanted to forget.

Kuro watched her for a moment before he too looked out over the lake, silent as a few leaves danced on the breeze.

'I should say something…'

_Actions speak louder than words, you know…_

Kuro sighed and looked back at his team mate; her eyes, although her left was sky blue and her right was fiery amber, they were filled with guilt and pain as she stared down at the faded wood of the dock and the still water of the lake, and tears at the corner of her sparkled in the moonlight.

Kuro sighed once more and hugged her tightly, "He'll be alright; I promise"

Kira leant further into his chest.

He smiled at her sadly, not knowing what else to say.

"Kuro-kun…?" she asked as she turned her body towards his even more.

He watched in confusion for a moment as she wrapped her arms around his neck, but, was deeply surprised as she kissed him softly.

His eyes widened in shock for a moment before he relaxed and leaned closer, gently pressing his lips tighter against hers.

After a moment, they separated due to need of air, both blushing heavily before they smiled.

"Does that answer how I feel about you?" Kira smiled.

"Hmm…maybe, but I think I'd need to check just once more" he smiled back as they leaned in once more and happily shared another affectionate kiss, only to separate once more moments later.

"Do you think we should head back now?" Kuro asked, shivering slightly.

"No, but I do think we should get out of this rain" Kira replied.

Kuro smiled, "Ok, just as long as we don't go home just yet"

Kira smiled again, "Deal"

They started to walk again, talking and laughing along the way as they did, fingers once again entwined.

--

Sakura re-entered the lounge room, drying her wet hair with a towel while she tried to balance some dry clothes for Coda under her arm.

"Coda-kun, I found some dry clothes for…" she had started, but noticed his dozing figure by the fire, "…you"

She placed the dry clothes and towel on the coffee table and slowly walked up to him, kneeling by him before slowly pulling his head onto her lap and brushing his wet hair aside.

He was on the verge of sleep, his eyes just open by a millimetre or so, but he wasn't awake either.

_I can't believe he fell asleep_

Sakura smiled softy, "He's so handsome…"

Her hand found its way down his face and touched his lips.

"I hope he hasn't been kissed yet…"

_Ha! He probably has…but, if he kisses you…it'll be your first kiss…_

Sakura smiled at the thought, touching her own lips for a moment before she passed her hand down to his chest and stomach.

"He's so well muscled, but so thin…"

_He'd protect you with all he had, even his own life, just to save you from any harm…_

Her hand moved to the lower half of his stomach, "And I'd do anything for him because I love him"

"I love you too, Sakura-chan…" he whispered with a soft smile as he eyes fluttered lazily open to about half way.

Sakura blushed heavily as he sat up, "Coda-kun! I thought you were…"

"I kinda was asleep, but I just woke up" Coda said, rubbing his eyes.

"H-How much did you hear?" Sakura asked.

"Just that you love me" Coda said as he caressed her cheek.

Sakura flushed a deep crimson as he came closer to her.

"Now, what was that about you hoping I hadn't been kissed?" he whispered with a teasing smile, wrapping one arm around her waist before he locked his lips with hers and kissed her softly, but passionately, lowering their bodies to the ground, his on top of hers.

Sakura was surprised and almost pushed him away, but her eyes fluttered closed and she started to kiss him back.

After a while, he ran out of breath, but he didn't care, he'd rather pass out than push her aside.

Sakura was the one that broke the kiss, due to the need of air, both blushing an equal crimson as emerald green met midnight blue.

Breathing heavily, they gasped air into starved lungs, searching the other's eyes for any hint of doubt in the feelings that had washed over them.

When they found none, however, they smiled and leant back in, sharing another passionate kiss as the heat that radiated from the fire warmed them further before they once again separated, and once again gasped air into starved lungs.

"I'll be back in a minute, I'm just changing…" he whispered before he got up and grabbed the dry clothes off the table.

Sakura sighed happily as she closed her eyes with a smile.

…_wow…_

'Yeah…wow…'

_I wonder what he looks like shirtless_

Sakura giggled as she blushed slightly at the thought.

Moments later, Coda returned, and, to Sakura's delight and surprise, he was shirtless.

"The shirt kinda didn't fit me; I hope it's alright" he apologized as he lay by her side, propped up on one elbow.

"…Uh, no…I-it's fine…" her voice trailed slightly

Sakura was too busy examining his body that his apology went almost unheard.

But, the things that almost brought tears to her eyes were the ribs that faintly stuck out and the faint, but horrid scars that covered his torso.

She was brought back from her thoughts, however, when Coda's hand brought her closer to his shivering body, his back facing the fire.

"Cold…?" Sakura asked as she turned and nuzzled into his chest.

Coda erupted in another shiver, "Just a bit"

"Don't worry; I'm sure I'll warm you up"

Coda smiled, "I was hoping that would be the case"

The two fell asleep in each other's embrace that night, waiting for the sun to rise and for a new day to begin.

* * *

**PLEASE READ THIS!! THERE IS SOMETHING I NEED TO ASK!!**

Hey all!

Chapter 10 is up! Like it? I hope so!

Sorry it took so long, I've been studying for tests and I've been sick from my cruise, just a cold, but still, I got it on the last day and I've had it ever since! -

Btw, **TO THE READERS;** I am unsure whether or not to continue this, even if I have many ideas for another lot of chapters, but I would like to know from whoever reads this if they would like me to continue! Once again, I have many ideas, but I would like to confirm if you would all like me to continue. **Please review and tell me if you would like another chapter!**

Thanks again!

Ja ne!


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